Past Events

Social Sciences Advanced Research Strategies

Wendy Cho: An Interdisciplinary Approach for Identifying Partisan Gerrymandering

CPAC Conference

CPAC XI: Political Violence and Reconciliation

Friday, April 26th, 2024 from 8am-4:30pm

The Comparative Politics Annual Conference (CPAC) at the Department of Political Science, Washington University in Saint Louis, has the dual purpose of discussing cutting-edge research and providing our students with the opportunity to meet leading scholars in the field. The conference is held every year at the end of the Spring term. CPAC is generously supported by the Department of Political Science at Washington University in St. Louis.

The 2024 CPAC will explore the consequences of political violence and efforts for reconciliation. The invited speakers are Megan Turnbull (UGA), Austin Wright (UChicago), Ana Arjona (Northwestern), Gareth Nellis (UC San Diego), Aidan Milliff (Florida State), Mike Findley (UT Austin), and Emily Ritter (Vanderbilt). This event will be held in person at the Department of Political Science, Seigle 248. The graduate student organizers for this year’s CPAC are Taylor Damaan and Dahjin Kim.

Follow us on Twitter to get updates about conference details and information!

Read about the 10th Anniversary of the Comparative Politics Annual Conference

WUSTEPS (Political Science Pipeline Program)

Visions in Methodology Conference

EmpowHER

Hosted by the Washington University Political Science Department and the Weidenbaum Center on the Economy, Government and Public Policy

Dates: Friday, August 23, 3 PM - Saturday, August 24, 5 PM (Detailed Schedule Below)

Location: 301 Seigle Hall, 1 Brookings Drive

Program Overview

Join us for an empowering 1.5-day program designed to equip women with the cutting-edge knowledge and bespoke data resources needed to run a successful campaign and represent their constituents effectively. Hosted jointly by the Washington University Political Science Department and the Weidenbaum Center, EmpowHer brings together world-class researchers and practitioners to share their expertise on running campaigns, optimizing strategies, understanding constituents, and navigating the unique challenges women face in political office.

Program Fee: $150 (Fee waivers available for those in need)

The content of this program is focused on educating and empowering women leaders to thrive in politics. The application is open to anyone who identifies as a woman, including trans women, cis women, and women of all gender identities; additionally, participants of marginalized genders who experience misogyny or otherwise feel comfortable attending this gathering are welcome to apply. Don’t miss this opportunity to transform your political aspirations into reality.

Current schedule of events:

Friday:

• 3:00-3:15 PM: Welcome - Professor Betsy Sinclair: Expert in social networks
• 3:15-3:45 PM: Professor Diana O’Brien: Expert in women’s political representation - “She’s Running: Why Women’s Representation Matters”
• 3:45-4:15 PM: Casey Lawrence - “MEC Top Tips for Candidate Committees”
• 4:15-4:45 PM: Brianna Lennon - “To File for Office…and Beyond!”
• 5:00-6:30 PM: Audra Achuleta - “Campaign 101”
• 6:30-8:00 PM: Reception (Partners Welcome)

Saturday:

• 8:30-8:45 AM: Professor Stefanie Linquist: Dean at WashULaw  - “The Impact of Women: From Public Administration to Judicial Elections”
• 8:45-9:15 AM: Professor Dan Butler: Expert in primary elections & advertising - “A Primer on Primaries”
• 9:15-9:45 AM: Professor Betsy Sinclair: Expert in social networks - “Door-to-Door (Deep) Canvassing”
• 9:45-10:15 AM: Coffee Break
• 10:15-10:45 AM: Professor Michael Strawbridge: Expert in Black politics - “Sister Space: Black Women in the Legislature”
• 10:45-11:15 AM: Professor Jaclyn Kaslovsky: Expert in US Congress and women in politics - “Women in Congress”
• 11:15 AM - 11:45 PM: Professor William Acree: Expert in origin stories - “Stories that Win”
• 11:45-12:15 PM: Kisha Lee - "Your First Campaign: School Board Elections"
• 12:15-1:00 PM: Lunch
• 1:00-2:00 PM: Professor Andrew Reeves: Expert in executive politics & St. Louis data - “St. Louis Data Workshop”
• 2:00-3:00 PM: Jill Schupp & Catherine Hanaway - “Redefining The Win”
• 3:00-3:30 PM: Coffee Break
• 3:30-4:00 PM: Dawn Suggs
• 4:00-4:30 PM: Sarah Fenske - “Getting (Good) Media Coverage - For Free”
• 4:30-5:00 PM: Lara Granich - “Closing Remarks”
• 5:00-5:15 PM: Closing - Betsy Sinclair

For event information please contact Brian Harting. 

Book Talk: Through the Grapevine by Taylor Carlson

Join the Chicago Center on Democracy for a virtual conversation on Taylor N. Carlson’s new book Through the Grapevine: Socially Transmitted Information and Distorted Democracy. Come hear about Carlson’s “enlightening examination of what it means when Americans rely on family and friends to stay on top of politics” (UChicago Press). The conversation will be skillfully moderated by Peter Forberg (PHD Student in Sociology at UC Berkeley). About the book: Accurate information is at the heart of democratic functioning. For decades, researchers interested in how information is disseminated have focused on mass media, but the reality is that many Americans today do not learn about politics from direct engagement with the news. Rather, about one-third of Americans learn chiefly from information shared by their peers in conversation or on social media. How does this socially transmitted information differ from that communicated by traditional media? What are the consequences for political attitudes and behavior? Drawing on evidence from experiments, surveys, and social media, Taylor N. Carlson finds that, as information flows first from the media then person to person, it becomes sparse, more biased, less accurate, and more mobilizing. The result is what Carlson calls distorted democracy. Although socially transmitted information does not necessarily render democracy dysfunctional, Through the Grapevine shows how it contributes to a public that is at once underinformed, polarized, and engaged,” (UChicago Press). Event is free and open to all, use this link to register for the Zoom meeting.

Social Security: Rethinking the Social Contract for Retirement

Each year between 2024 and 2027, over 4.1 million Americans will turn 65.

That’s 11,200 per day, on average. Many lack sufficient assets for later life, and the Social Security system faces unprecedented financial strain—posing major challenges to today’s younger generations. Will it be there for them? What might benefits look like? And what does the recent election mean for Social Security’s future? As retirement security grows increasingly elusive for millions of Americans, what is needed to meet this moment?

On December 3, Jason Fichtner—former Chief Economist of the Social Security Administration and now Chief Economist at the Bipartisan Policy Center—will discuss retirement security policy, sharing innovative ideas to ensure Social Security’s viability through a reinvigorated system for financial security in later life. Fichtner will be joined in conversation by:

Respondants:
Elizabeth Pippert Larson (Associate Director of Research and Administration, Weidenbaum Center on the Economy, Government, and Public Polic)
Nancy Morrow-Howell (Betty Bofinger Brown Distinguished Professor of Social Policy, Brown School; Co-Director, Harvey A. Friedman Center for Aging; Faculty Director with the Center for Social Development)

Moderator:
Ray Boshara (Senior Policy Advisor, Center for Social Development)

Sponsors:
CENTER FOR SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT
Brown School, Washington University in St. Louis
csd.wustl.edu
BROWN SCHOOL DEAN’S OFFICE
Brown School, Washington University in St. Louis
brownschool.washu.edu
CLARK-FOX POLICY INSTITUTE AT WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY
https://clarkfoxpolicyinstitute.wustl.edu/
HARVEY A. FRIEDMAN CENTER FOR AGING AT WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY
https://publichealth.wustl.edu/centers/aging/
WEIDENBAUM CENTER ON THE ECONOMY, GOVERNMENT, AND PUBLIC POLICY AT WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY
https://wc.wustl.edu/
DEPARTMENT OF POLITICAL SCIENCE AT WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY
https://polisci.wustl.edu
DEPARTMENT OF SOCIOLOGY AT WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY
https://sociology.wustl.edu/